Download this Gold Rush writing prompt where students explain life on the Australian goldfields during 1852.
A Gold Rush Writing Prompt for Year 5
If you’re looking for a writing prompt to complement your Gold Rush unit, this teaching resource is for you!
This gold rush writing prompt requires students to assume the persona of a miner living and working on the goldfields of Bendigo Creek, Victoria, in 1852. Students are required to write a letter home to their family in Melbourne, explaining the ins and outs of daily life on the goldfields. The resource includes a stimulus passage entitled Life on the Goldfields to help your students craft their responses.
Students are encouraged to write about:
- Accommodation and living conditions
- Weather
- Diet
- Health
- People
- Mining success (or lack thereof!)
- Leisure time
This resource downloads as an easy-print PDF or editable Google Slides file.
More Activity Ideas for Gold Rush Writing Prompts
Take your students’ letters from the goldfields even further with these simple activity ideas from our team!
- Create a Bush Post Office – Set up a classroom display resembling a makeshift post office in a Gold Rush town. Students can then post their letters and have their classmates deliver and read them.
- Record Audio Versions – Allow students to record themselves reading their letters aloud with bush sounds in the background. These can be turned into a podcast-style playlist or a listening station.
- Family History Connection – Encourage your students to share their letters at home so they can ask family members if any ancestors were involved in the gold rush. This could lead to rich discussions about both personal and national history.
Download This Gold Rush Writing Prompt
Use the Download button to access your preferred version of this resource and watch the Australian Gold Rush come alive in your Year 5 classroom!
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